Different types of environmental concerns and heterogeneous influence on green total factor productivity: Evidence from Chinese provincial data

Environmental issues have been the focus of attention worldwide, and achieving green development is crucial for solving such issues. This study uses the panel data of 30 Chinese provinces (municipalities and regions) for the period 2010–2020 to examine the general, long-term, short-term, and threshold effects of public environmental concerns and government environmental concerns on the development of green total factor productivity (GTFP). The method of GML index based on SBM-DDF is employed to measure and analyze the spatial and temporal evolution of China's GTFP. Text mining in Python is adopted to estimate the index of these two different types of environmental concerns. The empirical results show that: (1) GTFP demonstrates a distinct pattern of "down - up - down" during the period 2011–2020. (2) Public environmental concern is essential in accelerating the development of GTFP, and it is more significant in areas with higher industrialization and lower environmental pollution. Government environmental concern plays a crucial role in accelerating the development of GTFP, and it is especially significant in areas with lower levels of industrialization and reduced environmental pollution. (3) In terms of long-term and short-term effects, both public environmental concerns and government environmental concerns are essential long-term drivers for enhancing GTFP, rather than short-term ones.(4) Public and government environmental concerns are more effective in promoting GTFP in more economically developed regions. Furthermore, as the intensity of environmental regulation increases, the impact of public environmental concern on GTFP strengthens. Government environmental concerns should be aligned with a higher level of environmental regulation to maximize their contribution to GTFP. The findings above clarify the relationship among public environmental concerns, government environmental concerns, and GTFP, providing a realistic basis for achieving green, low-carbon, and sustainable economic development.